Re: [PLUG] PLUG West

[Rich Freeman via plug <plug@lists.phillylinux.org>]

On Thu, Feb 6, 2020 at 11:12 AM Fred Stluka via plug
<plug@lists.phillylinux.org> wrote:
>
> +1 for a different day, ideally *Thursday* (to avoid North Tue,
>        Central Wed, and Monday holidays).

I think mixing up nights makes sense just because some people have
standing commitments.  However, there is nothing wrong with having one
venue the 2nd Tues and another the 3rd Tues.  It just becomes an issue
for anybody with Tues bowling night or whatever.

> I think a 4th venue is probably a stretch.  The existing 3 are
> justified by distance.  Adding a nearby 4th might just stretch the
> speakers even thinner.  But, if the numbers justify it, go for it!

Well, if we wanted more we'd probably want to continue to space it out
- like something further south/east.

I think most speakers end up covering multiple venues anyway.  I know
that when I've given talks in 1-2 places it wouldn't have been a big
deal to add a 3rd.  Now, if the geographic spread gets big enough that
will only go so far.  If we had one in West Chester and another in
Trenton I could see how speakers at one might struggle to make it to
the other.  I know I don't tend to do all my talks at Central for this
reason.

> UnPLUG is an interesting idea.  Especially if we meet at a more
> social site, like a local restaurant or bar.  I suggest a fixed site
> though.  Hitting a different place each month may be too
> complex, and lose us some attendees.  Or maybe the variety will
> add appeal.  Who knows?

So, some pros/cons:

Static Location:
1.  Easy to schedule for all.  You just arrange something with the
venue and everybody puts it on their calendar and there is no further
admin overhead.
2.  You can pick a location that is fairly optimized, and chances are
the venue will give accommodations (back room, projectors, etc).  You
probably won't get as much of that for a one-time thing.
3.  You get to know the place - does it have good WiFi, does their
projector use HDMI, etc.

Varied Location:
1.  Variety is the spice of life and all that.
2.  Location could move around the city which might draw different
crowds or encourage some mixing.  On a Sat I think more people will be
willing to go further but if the static location were always 50miles
away that could be an issue.
3.  Requires more logistics.  Every month somebody has to pick a
place, announce, book, etc.
4.  If you want to do more than show up and eat/etc then you may need
to haul your own gear because you never know what you'll find there.
5.  Could involve more than just eating.  You could have it at a maker
space or near a museum or whatever which makes it part food and part
fun.

Either way such a thing would really need a "host" of sorts just to
administer it, and obviously a static location will be easier to
administer.  It probably should be up to whoever goes to the trouble
to organize it.

If it were purely social though that cuts down on the logistics.  Just
pick a place and reserve a table (or not if it is off-hours).  No need
for talks/projectors/whatevers.

-- 
Rich
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